Speakers

Thomas R. lnsel, M.D., a psychiatrist and neuroscientist, is a co-founder and President of Mindstrong Health.  Since May 2019, he has been a special advisor to California Governor Gavin Newsom and Chair of the Board of the Steinberg Institute in Sacramento, California.

From 2002-2015, Dr. Insel served as Director of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), the component of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) committed to research on mental disorders. Prior to serving as NIMH Director, Dr. lnsel was Professor of Psychiatry at Emory University, where he was founding director of the Center for Behavioral Neuroscience in Atlanta.

Most recently (2015 – 2017), he led the Mental Health Team at Verily—formerly Google Life Sciences— in South San Francisco, Calif.

Dr. Insel is a member of the National Academy of Medicine and has received numerous national and international awards including honorary degrees in the United States and Europe.

Judy Collins is an award-winning singer-songwriter esteemed for her imaginative interpretations of traditional and contemporary folk standards and her own poetically poignant original compositions. Her stunning rendition of Joni Mitchell’s “Both Sides Now” from her landmark 1967 album, Wildflowers, has been entered into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Judy’s dreamy and sweetly intimate version of “Send in the Clowns,” a ballad written by Stephen Sondheim for the Broadway musical A Little Night Music, won “Song of the Year” at the 1975 Grammy Awards. She’s garnered several top-ten hits gold- and platinum-selling albums. Recently, contemporary and classic artists such as Rufus Wainwright, Shawn Colvin, Dolly Parton, Joan Baez, and Leonard Cohen honored her legacy with the album Born to the Breed: A Tribute to Judy Collins.

Judy’s most recent collaboration with her as a singer-songwriter is the 2019 album Winter Stories, including critically-acclaimed Norwegian folk artist Jonas Fjeld, and masterful bluegrass band Chatham County Line. Winter Stories, is a collection of classics, new tunes, and a few surprises, featuring spirited lead vocal turns, breathtaking duets, and Judy’s stunning harmony singing.

Judy Collins is as creatively vigorous as ever, writing, touring worldwide, and nurturing fresh talent. She is a modern-day Renaissance woman who is also an accomplished painter, filmmaker, record label head, musical mentor, and an in-demand keynote speaker for mental health and suicide prevention. She continues to create music of hope and healing that lights up the world and speaks to the heart.

Dr. Miriam E. Delphin-Rittmon is currently Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Administrator of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. She previously served as Commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services (DMHAS) and served in this role for six years. Prior positions held at DMHAS include Deputy Commissioner, Senior Policy Advisor and Director of the department’s Office of Multicultural Healthcare Equity. In her role as Commissioner, Dr. Delphin-Rittmon was committed to promoting recovery oriented, integrated, and culturally responsive services and systems that foster dignity, respect, and meaningful community inclusion.

Prior to her current appointment, Dr. Delphin-Rittmon was an Adjunct Associate Professor at Yale University where she served on faculty for the past 20 years. While at Yale Dr. Delphin-Rittmon served as the Director of Cultural Competence and Research Consultation with the Yale University Program for Recovery and Community Health.

In May 2014, Dr. Delphin-Rittmon completed a two-year White House appointment working as a Senior Advisor to the Administrator of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. While at SAMHSA, she worked on a range of policy initiatives addressing behavioral health equity, workforce development, and healthcare reform.

Through her 20 year career in the behavioral health field Dr. Delphin-Rittmon has extensive experience in the design, evaluation, and administration of mental health, substance use and prevention services and systems and has received several awards for advancing policy in these areas. Most recently, she received the 2019 State Service Award from the National Association of State Drug and Alcohol Directors and the 2016 Mental Health Award for Excellence from the United Nations Committee on Mental Health.

She received her B.A. in Social Science from Hofstra University in 1989, her M.S. and Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from Purdue University 1992 and 2001, respectively, and completed a postdoctoral fellowship in clinical community psychology at Yale University in 2002.

Kelly Memphis is the Public Affairs Council’s Senior Manager of Government Relations and Stakeholder Engagement Practice, where she oversees programs and networks that help members leverage best practices in government relations at the federal, state and local levels. She regularly speaks and presents to public audiences, sharing insights to help lobbyists and advocates advance their goals.

Kelly has over a decade of experience in government relations and advocacy at the international, federal, and state level. Previous experience includes working for the American College of Cardiology (ACC) where in her role as government affairs manager she built ACC’s brand as an influential advocacy organization among key national leadership organizations, developed strong relationships with legislators and policymakers, and led members across the country through dozens of successful advocacy campaigns. Other past experience includes running global grassroots educational programs for the International Association of Women Judges.

Additionally, Kelly holds several leadership roles, such as a Board Member of the Washington Area State Government Relations Group and elected Chair of the National Lieutenant Governor’s Association.

Dr. Larry J. Sabato is a New York Times best-selling author, has won four Emmys, and is recognized as one of the nation’s most respected political analysts. He appears multiple times a week on national and international TV, including CNN, BBC, and CNN International. A Rhodes Scholar, Dr. Sabato is the founder and director of the University of Virginia’s Center for Politics, and has had visiting appointments at Oxford and Cambridge universities in England. Dr. Sabato is the author or editor of two dozen books on American politics. He has taught over 20,000 students in his career, and the University of Virginia has given him its highest honor, The Thomas Jefferson Award. In 2020-21 Sabato is celebrating his 50th year of association with the University of Virginia.

Dr. Sabato is the editor and lead author of the newly released book, “A Return to Normalcy?: The 2020 Election that (Almost) Broke America,” which explores the 2020 election and its outcome.

Professor Sabato heads up Sabato’s Crystal Ball, which has won numerous awards. The Pew Charitable Trust recognized the Crystal Ball as the #1 leader in the field of political prediction, and The Daily Beast designated it as one of the top political sites on the web. A thorough statistical analysis of all 2018 prognosticators found that the Crystal Ball was the best (Nate Silver of 538.com was second). Harvard Political Review just named the Crystal Ball #1 in predicting the Electoral College in 2020, getting 49 of 50 states correct as well as two competitive congressional districts that have one electoral vote each (NE-2 and ME-2): “While crystal balls may not exist in real life, Larry Sabato’s editorial team might be the next best thing.”

Dr. Sabato has received four Emmys for the PBS television documentaries “Out of Order”, which highlights the dysfunctional U.S. Senate, “The Kennedy Half-Century”, which examines the life, assassination, and lasting legacy of President John F. Kennedy, “Feeling Good About America,” which looks at the 1976 presidential election, and “Charlottesville,” which looks at the events in the titular city during August 11 and 12, 2017.

Professor Sabato is very active on social media. His Twitter feed (@LarrySabato) was named by Time Magazine as one of the 140 best.